He's right. The bullshit on TV on 9/11 this weekend was appalling. I realize this was a terrible event, but let's not jam it down everyone's throats 24/7.

I don't think tourists visiting Ground Zero is so bad. I mean, people from 50 something different nationalities died that day. Not to mention that it could be somewhat conforting what was once a pile of ruble and death, and is now a memorial to those who have died.

I think he's wrong in only the way a very young man with no emotional investment in a situation can be wrong and yet be so convinced of his rightness.

If nothing else, it's a day of national reflection in a country if not outright hostile to introspection in general (gets in the way of consumerism) then definitely not inclined to it.

We need more soul searching as a nation, not less.

it begins with turning the "11" in "9/11" into an image of the Towers and ends with replays of Bush standing in the midst of recovery workers with a bullhorn in his hand... This "branding" of a national tragedy is akin to robbing the grave of a soldier buried with his purple heart.

Leave it alone.

Because most people seem to interpret my not wanting to hear about 9/11 as not giving a shit, I said the following on Facebook yesterday:

It's not that I don't care about 9/11 or the people who lost their lives, it's that I think it's disgusting how much people use the whole thing to get attention for THEMSELVES.

Perhaps today would also feel less vulgar if there was more focus on the peoples' lives rather how they died. Nobody should be mourned as a spectacle.

Never heard of Toure before now and I don't know his opinions on anything else but, yes, what he says in that clip is dead on, though it's only part of what bothers me.

I'm already sick of the news telling me what to think about even mundane shit like politics. Now they want to package up the murder of ~3000 people as "America", sandwiched by commercials, and tell me how I should feel about it. PS: buy some sneakers (or the terrorists win).

*promote

Promoting this video back to the front page; last published Monday, September 12th, 2011 9:33am PDT - promote requested by xxovercastxx.

Sorry, but I agree with the guy who spoke second: we are in an attention-based economy. Whatever sells will win out, regardless of its real value. Otherwise, we'd have opera instead of reality based tv...

In the immortal words of Krusty the Klown: "Uuuughhh!--that just kept goin', huh?"

>> ^petpeeved:

If nothing else, it's a day of national reflection in a country if not outright hostile to introspection in general (gets in the way of consumerism) then definitely not inclined to it.
We need more soul searching as a nation, not less.


It should be that, and for anyone who treats the anniversary as an opportunity to reflect and search their soul, they have my respect. I don't believe that is what he was railing against.

But rather the way much of the news media makes it into an all-day annual event, produced like a schmaltzy patriotic movie. It's very often the opposite of thoughtful reflection, but feels more like non-stop shameless pandering. The most irritating sort of politics applied to a historic tragedy.

I guess it all depends on what broadcasts you've seen or listened to on the anniversary.

Sorry, but the last part of this video reminded me of this